
Physician Assistants
Also called: Certified Physician Assistant (PA-C), Family Practice Physician Assistant, Physician Assistant Certified (PAC), Physician's Assistant
What they do:
Provide healthcare services typically performed by a physician, under the supervision of a physician. Conduct complete physicals, provide treatment, and counsel patients. May, in some cases, prescribe medication. Must graduate from an accredited educational program for physician assistants.
On the job, you would:
- Examine patients to obtain information about their physical condition.
- Make tentative diagnoses and decisions about management and treatment of patients.
- Prescribe therapy or medication with physician approval.
Knowledge
Health
- medicine and dentistry
- therapy and counseling
Math and Science
- biology
- psychology
Arts and Humanities
- English language
Business
- customer service
Skills
Basic Skills
- listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
- reading work related information
Problem Solving
- noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
People and Technology Systems
- thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
- figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Abilities
Verbal
- communicate by speaking
- listen and understand what people say
Ideas and Logic
- make general rules or come up with answers from lots of detailed information
- use rules to solve problems
Visual Understanding
- quickly compare groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things
- quickly know what you are looking at
Math
- add, subtract, multiply, or divide
Personality
People interested in this work like activities that include helping people, teaching, and talking.
They do well at jobs that need:
- Integrity
- Attention to Detail
- Concern for Others
- Dependability
- Cooperation
- Stress Tolerance
Technology
You might use software like this on the job:
Medical software
Spreadsheet software
Office suite software
Education
Job Outlook
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